Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, 6 July 2023 - The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan hosted a Presentation Ceremony of the Book titled “Islamic Development Bank and Dr. Ahmad Mohammad Ali: History of an Institution and Journey of a President” which took place at the at the Institute of International Relations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan.

The book was presented as a gift to H.E. the Chairman of the Halk Maslakhaty (Peoples Council), the National Leader of the Turkmen People Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov by H.E, the first President of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Dr. Ahmad Mohammad Ali who is also the current President Emeritus of IsDB.  

The event was attended by high-level officials of the Government of Turkmenistan, foreign diplomatic missions, embassies, financial institutions, local education community represented by rectors, researchers, and students. As part of the presentation, an exhibition was organized to demonstrate joint projects and achievements of the partnership between the IsDB Group and Turkmenistan.

Talking about the Book, the speakers outlined that it illustrates valuable lessons and success stories that may be found valuable for diverse groups of readers, including researchers, development specialists, Islamic finance fellows, analysts of institutional and administrative practices. It also can be taken as reference work for any of these stakeholders.

The Government of Turkmenistan praised the role of H.E. Dr. Ahmad Mohammad Ali for putting his unwavering efforts behind the IsDB Group till his retirement in 2016 for the IsDB, as an institution, to transform into a leading global Islamic financial institution that has evolved from a regional single entity with 22 member countries into a global Group of six entities with 57 member states.

The ceremony further saw elaborations on how IsDB Group managed to sustain operations continuity during the global economic crisis of 2008 and continue providing infrastructure for inclusive social and economic development at a steady pace of its member countries and communities in non-member countries in line with the global efforts to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

In addition, IsDB Group’s intervention in Turkmenistan was highly praised and highly respected. In his statement, the IsDB Governor for Turkmenistan, H.E. Rahimberdi J. Jepbarov, described the Bank as one of the most active MDBs in Turkmenistan and in the region. He said: “The IsDB Group is considered as a reliable, trustworthy, and strategic partner in pursuing the development objectives of the Government.” The IsDB Governor then noted that cooperation between IsDB Group and Turkmenistan has been growing substantially - since the country joined the Bank in 1994 - and has been translated into tangible results that address improvement of Turkmenistan’s sustainable social and economic environment.  Furthermore, the Government appreciated IsDB support for contributing to the regional integration vision of Turkmenistan, which was demonstrated through support for several cross-border connectivity projects of regional dimensions in transport, telecommunication and energy infrastructure development such as: Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline project; the Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan-Iran (KTI) Railway Corridor; and the improvement of the international linkage via the installation of the section of transcontinental fiber-optic communication line.

The IsDB Governor has also highlighted that apart from IsDB financing, the IsDB Group entities’ support for Turkmenistan is yet of a huge potential to grow in the fields of trade financing, private sector development and export credit insurance.

In concluding remarks, H.E. Rahimberdi J. Jepbarov stated that going forward, Turkmenistan is welcoming IsDB Group’s collaboration to further support the regional connectivity and trade development initiatives and activities through new projects, and for further improvement of the inclusive social and economic environment on Turkmenistan.

Turkmenistan officially joined IsDB in 1994. The current portfolio of the IsDB Group financing with the country comprises US$ 1.7 billion approvals for 26 high impact projects covering such key strategic areas as: energy, transport, communication, healthcare, and private sector development. Turkmenistan is an upper middle-income country of 6.5 (2023) million people and the second largest country by area in the Central Asia. It is a landlocked and mainly desert country located in Central Asia, with an area of 488,100 sq. km. It shares borders with Afghanistan and Uzbekistan and has access to the Caspian Sea in the West, between Iran and Kazakhstan.